Diary of Roger's trip to the Titanium Rally in Jackson, California April 22, 2009

04/22/09 I got up at 1:30am to leave on my trip north. I met Don Fry and John Schooley at the Camp Pendleton rest stop on hwy 5. We got under way a 3:10am for our trip north. Our first stop was at Frasier Farms Flying J on the Grape vine where we gassed up and had breakfast. We then drove on into the Bakersfield Flying J where we picked up two more rigs into our Caravan. We continued on where our next stop was in Ripon Calif where we stopped at another flying J for more food. We arrived at the Jackson Rancho RV park at about 4:00pm. I attended an getting acquainted party at 6:00am and then watched a bit of basketball on TV and then went to bed early after an exhausting 21 hour day.
04/23/09 I slept until 10:30am, made breakfast, worked on my computer, got my satellite TV channels activated, and took it easy until 5:30am at which time I attended the getting acquainted appetizer party. I did not know about the party so I brought no food, but there was plenty available for me. After the party I socialized with John Schooley, Don, Mitch & Dana in front of Mitch’s trailer. Mitch set up an overhead propane heater which kept us warm.
04/24/09 It rained lightly last night. I ran out of propane in the morning, but had another tank to switch too. I attended the Rally bag omelets breakfast at 9:00am. I drove down to Jackson for diesel gas for my truck. I spent the afternoon on the computer and washing the dishes. The Tech Session started at 3:00pm. The mechanic from Don’s RV in Fresno answered most of the questions. Apparently they have new motors with lower gear ratios for the slides. I must research buying one for my large slide, perhaps get one as a spare. The session lasted until 5:00pm at which time the wine tasting and appetizer party began. I bought a 1/2 case; (4) Zinfandels & (2) Maximus. After wards I socialized a bit and then retired early.
04/25/09 Before breakfast I visited the casino to get my casino Dreamcatcher card. Theoretically I will get stimulus rebate dollars good for fuel and/or propane. The casino was very nice and up scale. The Indians are doing very well here at this delightful location. I attended the Rally cinnamon French Toast breakfast this morning. I cooked 12 pieces of good Costco bacon to contribute to the feast. I picked up the 1/2 case of wine which I ordered last night. Don Fry and I toured the area a bit to photograph the locale flowers and green country side. The small old gold town of Sutter Creek was especially scenic with lot of flowers including Dogwood and Lilac. There were also many old period Victorian houses to photograph. I found an old red de la pi dated building ready to fall over that was especially photogenic. I used the HDR technique on it with great results. We then came home and rested a bit. Next was a group barbecue and potluck. I had Costco fillet a and frozen baby corn. The variety of potluck dishes were huge and mostly excellent. We then had a raffle and virtually everyone got a prize. They also gave us a free bottle of wine from Avio Vineyards. I spend the rest of the evening socializing with Dick & Lu Vanderjagt and then with the friendly humorous group I spent the most time with; John Schooley, Don Fry, and Mitch & Dana Brown. Mitch had an overhead propane heater that was very comforting during these 50 degree night social events. I also got to know quite well Scott & Donna Vance from San Diego. Scott was a retired F14 Navy pilot and had lots of interesting accounts of his flying days. Retired to trailer about 10:30pm.
04/26/09 Got up late and only had coffee and bagel for breakfast. This is brag about your trailer tour today so I need to get it cleaned up now. It is a beautiful day in the high 60’s. I enjoyed talking to Titanium owner and inspecting their rig modifications. I joined the group tonight at Buscaglia’s Ristorante a local Italian restaurant. The ambiance of the place was excellent, but the food was not high quality or prepared to my liking. The floured breading was actually raw!!! The wine and the company was great however. Titanium owners are mostly very fun people to be around. Was very tired after dinner and retired early about 9:00pm.